As part of the EMINet Project (European Medicine Information Network), the project leader GÖG/ÖBIG (Gesundheit Österreich GmbH/Geschäftsbereich Österreichisches Bundesinstitut für Gesundheitswesen, Austrian Health Institute) was commissioned by the European Commission (Directorate-General for Enterprise and Industry, DG ENTR) to investigate potential factors contributing to the feasibility of assessing the establishment of a coordinated system for accessing orphan medicinal products (“orphans”) for EU citizens, namely the purchasing process for orphans in already established national Centres of Expertise (CoE)and the derogatory procedures to obtain orphan products outside the regular, i.e. general national reimbursement framework.